Thought-provoking commentary on technologies that are changing the way mankind does things.

Hands-free phone technology still distracts drivers, study finds

In-vehicle information systems aren't very good at solving safety-affecting distraction. That should serve as a warning that "hands-free" technologies can be very "cognitively demanding," a report has found.

It was a decade ago, back in 2005, that Network World wrote that many enterprises were beginning to ban employees from using "wireless handsets" in the car. Remember the Palm Treo? There was one main reason for the ban—corporate liability in the event of an accident.

Today, we're used to the idea of government-mandated hands-free calling for safety reasons.

But a new report (Factsheet PDF) is shedding doubt on just how safe hands-free technology actually is, even with automotive in-vehicle information systems (IVIS)—the screens in the car designed specifically for the purpose.

Not concentrating

Mental distraction can last for as long as 27 seconds after performing a hands-free operation on an IVIS, a new study from the American Automobile Association Foundation says.

The report suggests that the delay before the brain recovers from the action is a safety hazard.

The cars

AAA's study looked at 10 different vehicles and systems that ranged from Ford's MyFord Touch to Volkswagen's Car-Net and discovered "that IVIS use is associated with moderate to high levels of cognitive distraction for the driver," the report says.